Before Charlie Chan leaves his boat upon arriving in Shanghai for his first visit in years,
supposedly a vacation, a man stuffs a note in his pocket warning him not to leave the ship. At the docks, Chan is greeted
by Philip Nash, Sir Stanley Woodland's secretary, and by Diana Woodland, Sir Stanley's niece. He is surprised by his
son Lee, who was sent by his firm to look into the trade situation there.

At a banquet that evening that is being
given in Chan's honor, Sir Stanley opens a box that supposedly contains a special scroll for the detective. Suddenly,
Sir Stanley is shot dead by a gun that had been rigged inside of the box. The box, whose intended victim was Charlie
Chan, had been in Nash's possession all day, and when questioned about this, he stated that he had had no reason to check
the box's contents.

Later that night, a man peers into the window of Chan's hotel room, and, with a silencer on his
gun, shoots the figure in Chan's bed and flees. Lee, thinking that his Pop has been shot, runs into the room.
Moments later, Charlie Chan calmly walks into the room. He shows an amazed and relieved Lee how he had placed pillows
under the covers to give the appearance of his sleeping form.

The next day, when Chan calls for room service, the
switchboard operator telephones Ivan Marloff letting him hear for himself that the detective is still alive. Chan then
visits Diana, and after giving his condolences, learns that during the previous evening, someone had broken into her father's
library and had searched through his papers.

Back at the hotel, Chan is met by a man identifying himself as the chauffeur
of Colonel Watkins, the chief of police. He hands the detective a note instructing Chan to accompany the chauffeur.
After Chan leaves, Lee receives a telephone call from Colonel Watkins who says that he has not sent for Chan. Realizing
the ruse, Lee tries to follow his father, but he is subdued by the driver of his taxi and is taken to the same house where
Chan is being interrogated by Marloff, who is hidden in darkness. Chan and Lee trick the gang into believing that the
police have followed them to the house. Through quick thinking and Lee's vigorous fisticuffs, the father and son manage
to escape.

Later, Chan visits James Andrews, a special agent from Washington, D.C., and they discuss Sir Stanley,
who was a secret agent of the British government, and who had been cooperating with the opium committee of the League of Nations
as well as with officials of the Chinese government to round up a gang of opium smugglers who operate out of Shanghai. While
the two talk, Nash, now Andrews' secretary, searches through his belongings in another room.

As Chan and Andrews continue
their conversation, Chan glances at a mirror and notices a gun pointing through the door. Chan ducks just as the gun
is fired and slams the door shut, thus trapping the weapon in the doorjamb. Nash's thumbprint is found on the gun, and he is arrested.

Before he leaves, Chan secures a supposedly
innocuous letter from Sir Stanley to Andrews that had been marked "important." Heating the letter back at his hotel
room, Chan discovers a hidden message that states that Sir Stanley had made an important discovery concerning Ivan Marloff.
Chan thinks it odd and suspicious that earlier Andrews did not feel that the letter held any real importance. However,
Andrews arrives at Chan's room and, holding a cigarette lighter under the letter, reads the secret message.

Chan then
goes with Andrews to search the house where he and Lee had been held. While there, Chan discovers a ink stamp pad in
the fireplace. They then go to police headquarters where Diana arrives to see Nash. While she visits with him,
she slips him a gun and they both escape.

Returning to his room, Chan finds that Lee has trailed the taxi driver who
had earlier abducted him to a waterfront bar called the Verailles Café. Andrews calls Chan, stating that he has captured
a member of the gang and has cracked the case. When Chan arrives at Andrews' room, he sees Andrews beat a confession
out of chauffeur that Marloff is at the Versailles Café. Andrews and Chan leave for the café, where, meanwhile, the
fugitive Nash asks Marloff to put him on a boat for America. Calling Nash's escape from jail a trick that was arranged
by Charlie Chan, Marloff hits Nash, knocking him out, and tells his men to drop him overboard once the ship is out at sea.

CONCLUSION:

Upstairs, Chan and Andrews follow the taxi driver
into a room where the gang waits, hidden below a trap door. Searching through some boxes,
Chan discovers that the wine bottles contain opium. Finding the trap door, Andrews suggests that Chan go below and signal
authorities to run the boat to the government dock. Chan, feigning a faulty flashlight,
delays his descent until the police, whom Lee has called, arrive and capture the gang after a shootout.

Chan reveals
that it was Andrews' valet who had attempted to shoot Chan earlier and that Nash's thumbprint was put on the gun with a stamp
pad because the gang had felt that he knew too much about Sir Stanley's investigation. Andrews offers to remove the
gang members to the government's boat, but Chan pulls a gun and accuses him of being the real leader of the gang. Nash
had discovered through Sir Stanley's correspondence that the real Andrews neither smoked nor drank, yet the man posing as
Andrews had earlier accepted Chan's offer of scotch and soda and cigarettes. "You pretend to be G-man," says the detective,
"now turn out to be N.G.-man."

Lee arrives with a wire photo of Andrews, who was killed three weeks earlier in San
Francisco. Chan then sends Nash to comfort Diana. Although he was earlier annoyed that his son was always tying up the
telephone talking with a girl, Chan allows his son one phone call to his female friend, to which Lee, imitating his father,
says, "Thank you so much."

NOTE: Although the character played
by Frederik Vogeding is listed as "Burke" in the onscreen credits, he is called "Ivan Marloff" throughout the dialog of the
film.

Adapted from: AMERICAN FILM INSTITUTE CATALOG - Within Our Gates: Ethnicity in American
Feature Films, 1911-1960

CHARLIE CHAN'S APHORISMS:

Sixty summers young, sixty winters old...brrr.

Idea of making speech bring goose pimples.

Holiday mood like fickle girl - privileged to change mind.

Old excuse, like ancient
billy goat, has whiskers.

Two ears for every tongue.

Motive, like end of string, tied in many knots; end may be in sight, but hard to unravel.

Only one enemy necessary to commit murder.

Talk cannot cook rice.

Silence best answer when uncertain.

Distance no hindrance to fond thoughts.

Insignificant man has never improved on nature's tonic.

Dreams,
like good liars, distort facts.

Cold omelet, like fish out of sea, does not improve with age.

If answer known,
question seem unnecessary.

Hasty conclusion like hind leg of mule - kick backward.

Beauty of poppy conceal
sting of death.

Spider does not spin web for single fly.

Long journey always start with one short step.

Owner
of face cannot always see nose.

Shot in dark sometime find eye of bull.

Soothing drink, like summer shower,
bring grateful relief.

Smart rats know when to leave ship.

Only foolish dog pursue flying bird.

Innocent
man does not run away.

Appearances sometimes deceiving, like wolf in lamb's clothing.

No one knows less about
servants than their master.

OTHER WORTHY STATEMENTS:

Most
anxious to renew acquaintance with land of honorable ancestors. (To reporters)

Charlie Chan often see enemies in shadow box; now enemies see Charlie Chan. (To Marloff)

Charlie Chan often see enemies in shadow box. Now enemy see Charlie Chan. (To Marloff)

(Marloff: "Just a taste of your own medicine.")
Medicine very bitter.

Answer to question veiled in death. (To Marloff, regarding the
reason that Sir Stanley Woodland had asked Chan to come to Shanghai)

Principle of trusting no one make me doubt even you. (To Andrews)

(Andrews: "One man cannot move a mountain, you know.") But two men can start digging.

You pretend to be G-man, now turn out to be "NG"-man. (To Andrews)

Gave
you plenty of rope, you make excellent noose for neck. (To Andrews)

CHARLIE CHAN'S SONG:

The Song of Princess Ming Lo Fu

Long the journey, hard the way, But his heart was gay; For, was he not
a prince both strong and brave, Vowed a princess fair to save?

And he slew the dreadful dragon, Even cut off his seven heads; And in his cave he found the
princess Bound to her lowly bed.

Then came they both back to the land Of the mighty Emperor Fu Manchu, To claim his reward, the
dainty hand Of lovely Ming Lo Fu.

REVIEW:

Variety, October 16, 1935

Charlie Chan is in Shanghai this time. Strange that the Chinese detective has never
been set there before, but that oversight is patched up very nicely in this film. It's right in line with the eight
previous Chan pictures and should follow along in its okay b.o. [box office] footsteps.

Warner Oland, the merry Swede who has won himself an international rep as a Chinaman, still handles the Chan assignment
with competence and ease. This time he's after a gang of dope smugglers in China.

Keye Luka[sic] is cast as his son and gets in some nice laughs. Charles Locher is the juve and seems to promise
screen growth. Other parts are mostly type cast.

After Earl Derr Biggers died last year Fox seemed to be faced
with the possible loss of the Chan stories as future screen fodder. They haven't at all. By assigning others to
carry the character on, they've got themselves a steady stream of popular material.

Gerard Fairlie and Edward T. Lowe
did a fine job on the current episode and Charlie's future still looks good.

FILM NOTES:

PROBABLE DATE OF CHARLIE CHAN'S
INVOLVEMENT: May 7-9, 1935 (Note: Although on the surface, Charlie Chan seems to be at work on this case
only two days, the growth of beard stubble shown on Philip Nash's face following his "escape" from police headquarters demands
that at least one more day, perhaps two, be considered.)

ACCORDING TO THE MISSIONARY WHO
MET CHARLIE CHAN ON THE SHIP TO SHANGHAI, THE LOCATION OF THE MISSION HE WAS CONDUCTING: "...in the Yang Tze Valley."

THE NOTE THAT WAS SLIPPED INTO
CHARLIE CHAN'S POCKET ABOARD THE SHIP:

THE WORDS ON THE LIFE PRESERVER
OF THE SMALL BOAT CARRYING THE REPORTERS AND CHARLIE CHAN: "Victoria - Shanghai"

THIS WAS NOT CHARLIE CHAN'S
FIRST VISIT TO SHANGHAI: REPORTER: Reporter: "This is your first visit to Shanghai in many years, isn't it?"
Charlie Chan: "Yes." (Note: According to the film "The Shanghai Cobra," Charlie Chan was again in Shanghai,
in 1937, as the Japanese bombed that city.)

THE TEXT OF THE SIGN AT CHINESE CUSTOMS:

"CHINESE MARITIME CUSTOMS

BAGGAGE EXAMINED HERE"

THE AMOUNT OWED BY LEE CHAN TO
THE RICKSHAW MAN, ACCORDING TO THE LATTER: "Wu souti" ("Five souti.")

ACCORDING TO CHARLIE CHAN, LEE'S
BUSINESS REASON FOR COMING TO SHANGHAI: "...(to) sell oil for lamps of China." (Note: This was an in-joke
reference to a film that Keye Luke had recently completed titled "Oil for the Lamps of China.")

THE SPEAKERS AT THE BANQUET HONORING CHARLIE CHAN:

Colonel Watkins, Commissioner of Police

Mr. Sun Wong

Charlie Chan

Sir Stanley Woodland

CHARLIE
CHAN'S OLD FRIEND: Colonel Watkins (Colonel Watkins: "I count myself lucky to have known Charlie Chan
for quite a few years.") Colonel Watkins knew Charlie Chan from the time he (Watkins) worked at Scotland Yard "at the
time of Sir Lionel Bashford's murder."

Gin Rickey - An
alcoholic beverage consisting of a mixture of gin, lime, and carbonated water.

James Andrews: "I'll join you at noon
for a Gin Rickey."

G-man- Government man. A special law-enforcement
agent of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Charlie Chan: "You pretend to be G-man, now turn out to be N.G.-man."

League of Nations - A world organization established
in 1920 to promote international cooperation and peace. It was first proposed in 1918 by President Woodrow Wilson, although
the United States never joined the League. Essentially powerless, it was officially dissolved in 1946.

sarsaparilla- Any of several tropical
American plants of the genus Smilax, having fragrant roots used as a flavoring. The dried roots of any of these
plants. A sweet soft drink flavored with these roots.

Charlie Chan: "Sarsapirilla."

sea legs - The ability to adjust one's
balance to the motion of a ship, especially in rough seas.

James Andrews: "...see if I can get rid of these sea legs."

Yang Tze - The Yang Tze (or Yangtze) River
is one of the world's great rivers. The Yang Tze valley is home to about one-third of China's population. Shanghai
is known as the gateway of the Yang Tze, and, for two centuries, the Yang Tze has served as a transportation and commercial
thouroughfare.